UPDATE: Del Conte later clarified his comments, backing away from his earlier statement that Florida State, Clemson and Miami have specific interest in joining the Big 12.

TCU's Chris Del Conte clarifies comments: I was referring to rumor mill, not confirming schools interest in #Big12.—
Stefan Stevenson (@FollowtheFrogs) May 23, 2012

TCU athletic director Chris Del Conte said this morning that Florida State, Clemson and Miami have interest in moving to the Big 12 conference, according to a tweet from RedRaiderSports.com‘s Chris Level.

TCU AD spoke at a breakfast here in Lbk this morning, said the once dead Big 12 now has schools like FSU, Clemson and Miami trying to get in

—
Chris Level (@ChrisLevel) May 23, 2012

Del Conte was speaking at a breakfast on the Texas Tech campus when he made his remarks. Florida State has been rumored to be interested in leaving the ACC for the Big 12. The chairman of the university’s Board of Trustees said the school should look at what the Big 12 has to offer. His comments reportedly came because of disappointment over the ACC’s new television rights agreement.

Former Seminoles star Derrick Brooks, a former member of the university’s Board of Trustees,  said that the Big 12 had reached out to the school.

Some writers have speculated that, if the Big 12 extended an offer to Florida State, it also would try to add another school to keep an even number of teams in the conference. The league will have 10 teams next season. After the departures of Colorado, Nebraska, Missouri and Texas A&M in recent years, the conference added TCU and West Virginia to help fill the void.

Del Conte’s comments might be the strongest indication yet that other ACC members will jockey to join the Seminoles in the Big 12, should they leave.

Rumors have swirled this week about the possibility of Florida State University leaving the Atlantic Coast Conference after two decades and moving to another prominent athletic conference, namely the Big 12. Those rumors only intensified when multiple prominent FSU officials stated their interest in the move publicly. But perhaps the most prominent person in the university’s history spoke out today and defended the Seminoles’ presence in the ACC, according to CollegeFootballTalk.

“My message would be stay in the ACC,” legendary coach Bobby Bowden said in a SiriusXM radio interview. “Do you want to win a National Championship at Florida State? You’ve got a better chance in the ACC than you have in the Big 12, or even the SEC.

“You say, ‘Well, gosh, they’re much stronger in those conferences.’ Yeah! They beat up on each other and you can’t hardly get there. You know what? Florida State, wait ‘til you get good enough to rule the ACC then you start looking for someplace to jump. But my opinion? They should stay right where they are.”

Bowden has a career record of 377–129–4 as an NCAA head coach, including 21-10-1 in bowl games; he won 12 ACC championships and two national championships (1993 and ’99) during his tenure at Florida State.

FSU’s longtime coach was ultimately forced out due to old age — he finally announced his retirement on December 1, 2009, weeks after his 80th birthday. He was succeeded by Jimbo Fisher.

Florida State athletic director Randy Spetman addressed the rumors on Friday that his school was looking to join the Big 12, saying that the school is “committed to the ACC,” according to the Orlando Sentinel.

“We’re in the ACC. We’re committed to the ACC,” Spetman told the Sentinel. “That’s where our president and the board of trustees has committed to, so we’re great partners in the ACC.”

Spetman added: “I’m not out negotiating.”

The football program at Florida State is facing a $2.4 million budget shortfall and is looking for additional revenue, which is where the rumors about the Big 12 began, according to the Sentinel. But on Wednesday,  the ACC and ESPN announced a new television deal that would bring each school an addition $17 million per year, according to the Sentinel.

“With the new TV deal, it shows some real positives for us to be successful,” Spetman said.

Two Florida State University football players were arrested over the weekend in separate incidents, the Orlando Sentinel reports.

The Leon County Sheriff’s Office confirmed that true freshman linebacker Arrington Jenkins was arrested on Sunday and charged with vehicle grand theft.  He was released after posting $5,000 bond.

Junior cornerback Avis Commack was arrested on Friday morning after turning himself in for a felony grand theft charge.  Commack reportedly stole an iPad from  a campus computer lab.  The iPad was found with Commack’s university ID login used to access the FSU wireless network.

Commack was released under pre-trial conditions and reportedly participated in the fall semester graduation later that evening.

Commack played in 11 of 12 games for the Seminoles this season registering eight solo tackles.  Jenkins is slated to redshirt the upcoming season.